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How to prepare forthe EIA program?

You are about to start your startup journey at the European Innovation Academy. EIA is the world’s leading entrepreneurship program. This year we will gather more than 1000 students from all over the world with 3 programs in different locations to build startups in just 15 days.

You will get the chance to meet and work with mentors from Silicon Valley and EU who have built companies themselves. So, they understand your journey and have learned practical lessons from their experience. You will also hear keynotes from experts in their fields that will help you to de-velop your company. And last but not least, you will get to work with talented participants from across the globe to make your joint dream come true.

You will feel what it is like to be an entrepreneur - the highs, the lows, the long hours, the amazing successes and the sense of accomplishment in the end. We hope you come into the program with an open mind to absorb all the knowledge and the full experience, a spark in your eyes to learn about entrepreneurship and try out the role yourself and a willingness to change the world.

Here are some common questions answered to be prepared for the lift-off.

• What are the tools I have to use in the program?The program is built on 3 main tools that everyone will use.Using all of them is mandatory to pass the program. The tools are the following:

• What will I do in the program?You will go through the process of building your own startup. It will start with a problem you want to solve and finishing with a product/service that you will present to the inves-tors. We will teach you all the necessary steps that you need to take to make sure that you will be successful. Also, you will work in an international team with talented people and will be mentored by a number of experts from across the globe.

• The Playbook- The main guide through the program. The goal, tasks and tools for every day are explained.

• Online Platform- A common workplace for you and your team to fill in canvases, upload templates and give and receive feedback from your mentors. - The platform also has the full list of participants, mentors and the daily schedule.

• Growby - Access will be sent one week before the program starts.- Your virtual mentor and the main communication tool between the EIA team and you. - Check the daily schedule, receive editable PDF templates for your daily tasks, additional courses, updates, and additional information.- You can talk to Growby on Facebook Messenger.

PROGRAM RELATED

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• These are specific terms used in the program you should know:

• Where can I see the program schedule?Check the Online Platform or ask Growby.

• What does the competence on the Online Platform mean? How do I know which one to choose?- All participants need to choose one of the following competencies: business, marketing, software developer, UX/UI design or other. Each team that is formed in the program should have as many different competencies as possible. - When you receive the invitation from the Online Platform and are filling in your profile, you should also choose your competence for the program. You can change it during the program. - If you have multiple competencies then choose the main skill that you feel strongest in and want to develop further in the program. However, this does not mean that if you choose a business that you will only work on the business side if you also have a design, marketing or software developer skills you can implement them. In a startup team tasks are divided and conquered as a team!

- If you have a problem to solve, fill in a Problem Canvas to explain the problem, poten-tial customer and who are you missing from your team. You will receive this canvas on the spot. - Problem Expo is a fair where you will present that canvas to other participants to find your missing team members.- If you do not have a problem to solve, walk around, read the canvases and talk to the other participants to find people you want to work with. - The aim is to gather a team of 5 members with different skill sets. If that is achieved, the team will go and meet with the Chief Mentors who will confirm the team. - It is not mandatory to upload a problem to the Online Platform. - Only teams with 5 members will be approved, appointed a Chief Mentor and can con-tinue working in the program. Requirements for teams are explained in the Rules and Procedures HERE.- Only if you are able to gather a team of 5, your problem will be developed in the program. However, expect a lot of pivoting throughout the program.- Not all problems uploaded to the Online Platform will be developed further in the program.

- Problem Expo - Day 0

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- A 1-on-1 meeting with investors for feedback and comments.- You will show your 3-minute pitch deck as well as your developed product.- Investors are not choosing the top 10 from these meetings.- All teams have access to investor feedback meetings.

- Investors will choose the top 10 teams to present at the Grand Pitch from the teams they meet at the investor pitch.- To gain access, the team has to fill the Investor Pitch Criteria. - They will evaluate each team they meet with 1 - 10 for the following factors: - 500 proven customers or users (deadline Day 13 at 8 PM). - Number of sign-ups from customers (list of emails, outtake from HubSpot CRM, outtake from other CRM systems). - Official correspondence (letter of intent) and/or documents from companies indicating the number of users.- They will evaluate each team they meet with 1 - 10 for the following factors: - Opportunity (proof of problem/solution fit) - Traction (proof of product/market fit) - Scalability (proof of business model fit) - Team and execution - Presentation

- Investor Feedback - Day 14

- A special 1-on-1 meeting between a mentor and your team. Your team has a specific time slot for the meeting. The schedule is sent via Growby.

- Clinic

- Investor Pitch - Day 15

- Additional mentoring with software and hardware mentors to develop an MVP of the solution.- To gain access, the team has to fill the Product Development Sprint criteria.

- A committee of software & hardware mentors will choose one technical solution to access Investor Pitch and get a special prize.

- Software & hardware mentors approve the Digital Prototype (link upload dead-line Day 8 at 8 PM).- One team member has gained required Growby points (deadline Day 8 at 8 PM) by completing Growby courses.- Receive validation from all mentors for Day 1 - 8 (deadline Day 8 at 8 PM).

- All the teams get to show off their products/solutions to all the other participants, men-tors and guests for feedback and validation.- None of the teams are eliminated after the Startup Expo.- Chief Mentors will choose one team from the Startup Expo that will get a special prize based on their process in the program and market potential.

- Startup Expo - Day 7

- Product Development Sprint - Day 10-12

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• How to find a problem worth solving?- Before you start building anything, you need to understand if it is a problem worth solving. Read the full article on Inc.com.

- How to identify problems that are actually worth solving is covered in the Forbes article.

• How to come up with ideas? - Watch this video on how to analyze your ideas.

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GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

INC.COM ARTICLE HERE

FORBES ARTICLE HERE

WATCH VIDEO HERE

• How to work as a team? - Teams go through different stages in development. Read about team formation.

READ ARTICLE HERE

• What else should I know?- There is a lot of special vocabulary connected to startups. Read this article to learn and understand the basic ones. This will help you understand everything taught in the keynotes.

- The world is changing every day. New technologies change how we use products and solve problems. Check out these technology trend predictions from Forbes for 2019.

READ ARTICLE HERE

TREND PREDICTIONS HERE

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There are a lot of great startup books out there to help you get started with the program. Here are a few of our recommendations:

• The Lean StartupThis is the core methodology behind building a modern startup. Written and published by Eric Ries in 2011. The Lean Startup provides a scientific approach to creating and managing startups and get the desired product to customers' hands faster. The Lean Startup method teaches you how to drive a startup-how to steer, when to turn, and when to persevere-and grow a business with maximum acceleration. It is a principled approach to new product development.

• Business Model GenerationBusiness Model Generation features practical innovation techniques used today by leading con-sultants and companies worldwide, including 3M, Ericsson, Capgemini, Deloitte, and others. The book helps to define the key elements which lead to great entrepreneurial ventures. The main purpose of the book is to help companies devise great strategic plans for a successful future; highlighting all the factors which determine the success and failure of businesses today. Business Model Generation was self-published in 2009 and over 1.5 million people have read it in 36 languages.

• Design a Better BusinessWhat does design thinking for strategy and innovation look like? What new tools, skills, and mind-sets need to be adapted to create a sustainable culture of innovation? This book stitches together a complete design journey from beginning to end in a way that you’ve likely never seen before, guiding readers (you) step-by-step in a practical way from the initial spark of an idea all the way to scaling it into a better business. Design a Better Business includes a comprehensive set of tools (over 20 total!) and skills that will help you harness opportunity from uncertainty by building the right team(s) and balancing your point of view against new findings from the outside world.

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

THE LEAN STARTUP

BUSINESS MODEL GENERATION

DESIGN A BETTER BUSINESS

LIST OF BOOKSDo you want to read some more?Here is a list of 30 startup books that we recommend.